Floodlighting luminaire



1967 D. E. HUSBY FLOODLIGHTING LUMINAIRE 2 Sheets Sheet 1 Filed Oct. 21, 1964 Feb. 7, 1967 D. E. HUSBY FLOODLIGHTING LUMINAIRE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Oct. 21. 1964 I tion.

United States Patent 3,303,336 FLOODLIGHTING LUMINAIRE Donald E. Husby, Fairview Park, Ohio, assignor to Westinghouse Electric Corporation, Pittsburgh, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Filed Oct. 21, 1964, Ser. No. 405,342 4 Claims. (Cl. 240-3) This invention relates to luminaires and, more particularly, to a luminaire of the fioodlighting type.

In the art of floodlighting, access to the lamp has been provided in various ways. For some applications it is expedient to provide a luminaire in which the lamp is readily accessible from the back or the reflector side, and also from the front or refractor side. It is desirable for the reflector member and lens member to be independently removable. A further desirable feature is to provide interchangeable reflectors and refractors. The light could then be emitted in the opposite direction by switching these members. The feature of various shaped interchangeable reflectors and refractors which allow for unusual environments and special uses of the luminaire is desirable. The provision of a sealing means against dirt, insects and the elements, while old in the art, is an advantageous feature for the floodlighting luminaire. The bending moment produced by the luminaire in the supporting structure thereof is an undesirable feature often found in luminaires of this type.

Accordingly, it is a general object of this invention to provide an improved luminaire in which the lamp is accessible from both the rear and the front.

It is another object of this invention to provide an improved luminaire which has interchangeable reflecting and retracting portions.

A further object of this invention is to provide a luminaire which can readily be modified to emit light in either of two opposite directions.

An additional object of this invention is to provide a luminaire which is sealed in an improved manner against foreign corrupting matter.

Yet another object of this invention is to provide a luminaire which is adapted to receive reflectors and refractors of various shapes.

A more specific object of this invention is to provide a luminaire in which the reflector, or ref-ract-or, or both, may be removed without disturbing the remainder of the luminaire.

A further object of this invention is to provide a luminaire which does not produce undue stress in the support structure thereof.

Briefly these objects of the invention are accomplished by providing a generally annular, band shaped connecting ring having a flange or rib extending around its inner surface. The flange has two lateral or side surfaces each of which extends radially of the band shaped ring. The two surfaces are of substantially identical dimensions. One lateral flange surface engages the periphery of the reflecting portion of the luminaire, and the other lateral flange surface engages the periphery of the refracting por- The reflecting and retracting portions also have substantially identical peripheral dimensions, and are interchangeable. The reflecting and refracting portions may be removed and replaced independently, providing ready access to the lamp from either side. The flange surfaces, being on the inside of the connecting ring, are protected from the elements by the connecting ring and the peripheries of the reflecting and refracting portions. The above described main portion of the luminaire is supported by a base which houses the ballast and associated circuitry. The ballast is placed within the base so as to cause the center of gravity of the entire luminaire to be substantially directly above the supporting structure.

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The novel features which are believed to be characteristic of this invention, both as to its organization and method of operation, together with further objects and advantages thereof, will be better understood from the following detailed description considered in connection with the accompanying drawings in which an embodiment of the 1 invention is illustrated by way of example. It is to be expressly understood, however, that the accompanying drawings are for the purpose of illustration and description only, and are not intended as a definition of the limits of the invention.

For a better understanding of the invention, reference should be made to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevational view of the luminaire, shown partly in section;

FIG. 2 is a front elevational view of the luminaire shown in FIG. 1;

i the luminaire shown in FIG. 1.

Refering now to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the connecting structure of the luminaire is a band shaped member 1 which has a T cross section. The rib or flange 3 extends around the inner side of band shaped member 1 forming the vertical portion of the T cross section. The flange 3 has two oppositely disposed and identical gasket faces or sealing surfaces 5 and 7, which engage gasket 9 and gasket 11, respectively. Gasket 9 in turn engages the peripheral edge or surface 13 of the reflecting back closure member 15, and gasket 11 in turn engages the peripheral edge or surface 17 of the supplementary reflecting portion 19 of the front closure member 21. A sealed enclosing structure 22 containing light source 20 of the luminaire (see FIG. 3) is formed by the band shaped member 1, back closure member 15, front closure member 21, gasket 9 and gasket 11. The top of the T is formed by the horizontally extending portion 23, which serves to protect sealing surfaces 5 and 7, and gaskets 9 and 11 from the elements. In its lower portion the band shaped member 1 is provided with two legs 24. Each leg 24 has a pivoting structure 25 through which a bolt 27 is inserted to establish a pivoting axis for the main portion of the luminaire. When the main portion of the luminaire is set at the desired angle, the bolt 27 is tightened to prevent further pivoting. One of the legs 24 is provided with a rotational locator disc 65. Locator disc 65 is calibrated with degree markings 66. Before the markings 66 can be turned to some desired setting, the bolts 67 must be loosened, which allows the locator disc 65 to rotate independently of the enclosing structure 22.

The front closure member 21 is comprised of a supplementary reflecting portion 19 and a light transmitting or refracting portion 29. The supplementary reflecting portion 19 reflects diverging rays of light from light source 20 back in to the luminaire for reflection through refracting portion 29. The supplementary reflecting portion 19 is provided with double web hinge 31 through which is inserted a pin 33. A clip 35, which is afiixed to band shaped member 1, retains pin 33 between the webs of the double web hinge 31. This arrangement provides a hinge whereby the front closure member 21 may be swung up and open allowing access to light source 20 from the front of the luminaire.

The supplementary reflecting portion 19 is further provided with latches 37 and 39 to hold the reflecting portion 19 shut and in contact with the peripheral surface 17, gasket 11 and sealing surface 7. Considering the latch 37, it is formed of a resilient wire 40 which is pivoted at bearing 41 affixed to the front closure member 21. When the manually operated end of the wire 40 is forced into the catch 42 which is affixed to the front closure member 21, the other end of wire 40 engages the catch 43 which is formed as a wire-receiving slot in the band shaped member 1. The latch 37 when in closed position urges a sealing contact between the periphery of the front closure member 21 and the rib 3. The latch 39 operates in a similar manner to secure the front closure member 21 to the band shaped member 1.

The back closure member 15 is provided with a concave parabolic reflecting surface on most of its inner side. The light emitted from the luminaire is focused into a beam by this reflecting surface in conjunction with supplementary reflecting portion 19 and refracting portion 29. Referring now to FIG. 3, the back closure member 15 is provided in its lower portion with a double web hinge 45 through which is inserted pin 47. Clip 49 which is affixed to the band shaped member 1 retains pin 47 between the webs of double web hinge 45. This provides a hinge whereby the back closure member 15 may be swung down to provide ready access to light source 20 from the rear of the luminaire. The back closure member 15 is provided with latches 51 and 53 which function similar to latch 37. These latches 51 and 53 urge a sealing contact between the back closure member 15 and the band shaped member 1. The hinging means and latching mechanisms of the front closure member 21 and the back closure member 15 are located under the horizontal extending portion 23 of the band shaped member 1 which masks any projections in the silhouette of the luminaire. The appearance is accordingly enhanced.

Refering again to FIG. 3, a light source 20 with a lampholder 24 are shown in dashed lines and are positioned within enclosing structure 22. Light source 20 is supplied with electrical power by lead-in wire 59. Lead-in wire 59 enters the back closure member 15 through a hole in back member 15 which is sealed by packing gland 61. The wire 59 connects to the lampholder 24 mounted within the luminaire. The lampholder 24 is mounted so that the long axis of the light source 20 (preferably a discharge lamp) is horizontal. Thus, the light beam has its wide dimension spread horizontally, a desirable feature in many applications.

As shown in FIG. 1, the other end of the wire 59 connects to the elongated base member 63 which is adapted to be aflixed to a supporting structure (not shown) by suitable bolts or support means 64 which are aflixed to the bottom portion of the base member 63. The main portion of the luminaire is pivoted on the base member 63 at a position which is offset from the midpoint thereof. An electrical ballast 70 for the lamp 20 is contained within the base member 63 and is offset from the midpoint thereof in the opposite direction from that portion of the base member to which the main luminaire en closure is affixed. As a result, the electrical ballast 70 counterbalances the main luminaire portion about the support bolts 64, thereby adding stability to the structure.

Refering to FIG. 6, the base 63 provides a vertical pivoting axis by means of pivoting center 69 and pivoting groove 71. A vertical rod-like projection or support means 64 from a supporting structure (not shown) engages pivoting center 69 and the other rod-like projection 64 fits into groove 71.

Safety chain 73, illustrated in FIG. 2, connects front closure member 21 with band shaped member 1. Luminaires of this type are often mounted high off the ground. Safety chain 73 is an added measure to insure that front closure member 21 does not fall when being removed or cleaned. In FIG. 3, a similar safety chain 75 connects back closure member 15 to band shaped member 1.

In FIGS. 4 and 5, a modified luminaire is shown equipped with alternate configurations 29a and 29b of the lens or refracting portion 29. These two modified luminaires are not provided with any supplementary reflecting portion 19. The flat refracting portion 29a and the convex refractor portion 29b are considerably larger than refractor portion 29 in the embodiment as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

It will be recognized that the objects of the invention have been achieved by providing ready access to the lamp from the front and the rear through the hinging and latching configurations, in conjunction with the structure of band shaped member 1. The substantially identical peripheral dimensions of the closure members and the simple pin construction of the hinge allow the closure members to be removed and interchanged easily. The direction of the emitted beam is determined by the closure members arrangement and the two pivoting means as described. The particular structure of the latching configurations and sealing surfaces provide a seal against corrupting matter. The T cross section of the band shaped member shields the latching end hinging configurations from view and supplements the appearance of the luminaire.

While the invention has been shown in but one form, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that it is not so limited, but is susceptible to various changes and modifications without departing from the spirit thereof.

I claim. as my invention:

1. A luminaire comprising:

(a) a band shaped member;

(b) a flange projecting around the inside surface of said band shaped member, said flange having a first surface and a second surface each generally radially disposed with respect to said member, and said first and second surfaces generally facing in opposite directions;

(c) a back closure means having a periphery and a concave reflecting surface, said back closure means attached to said band shaped member by a first hinging means proximate said back closure means periphery, said back closure means periphery engaging said first surface of said band shaped member when said back closure means is in the engaging position with respect to said band shaped member;

(d) a first latching means proximate the engagement between said back closure means periphery and said first surface of said band shaped member, and said first latching means urging contact therebetween;

(e) a front closure means having a periphery at least partially comprising a light transmitting substance, said front closure means attached proximate to said band shaped member by a second hinging means proximate said front closure means periphery, said front closure means periphery engaging said second surface of said band shaped member when said front closure means is in the engaging position with respect to said band shaped member;

(f) a second latching means proximate the engagement between said front closure means periphery and said second surface of said band shaped member, and said second latching means urging contact therebetween, said back closure means and said front closure means being interchangeable;

(g) a light source enclosing structure formed when said back closure means and said front closure means are in said engaging position with respect to said band shaped member, both said hinging means being operable independently of one another thereby providing access to the interior of said enclosing structure from the back and from the front independently; and

(h) a base means attached to said band shaped member for supporting said enclosing structure.

2. A luminaire comprising:

(a) a band shaped member;

(b) a flange projecting around the inside surface of said member, said flange having a first and a second surface generally radially disposed with respect to said band shaped member, said surfaces of said flange generally facing in opposite directions;

(c) a back closure means having a periphery and a concave reflecting surface, said back closure means attached to said band shaped member by a first hinging means proximate said back enclosure means periphery, said back closure means periphery engaging said first surface of said flange when said back closure means is in the engaging position with respect to said band shaped member;

((1) a first latching means proximate the engagement between the back closure means periphery and said first surface of said flange, said first latching means urging contact therebetween;

(e) a front closure means having a periphery at least partially comprising a light transmitting substance, said front closure means attached to said band shaped member by a second hinging means proximate said front closure means periphery, said front closure means periphery engaging said second surface of said flange when said front closure means is in the engaging position with respect to said band shaped member;

(f) a second latching means proximate the engagement between said first closure means periphery and said second surface of said flange, and said second latching means urging contact therebetween;

(g) a light source enclosing structure formed when said back closure means and said front closure means are in the engaging position with respect to said band shaped member, said front closure means and said back closure means being interchangeable, said two hinging means being operable independently of one another thereby providing access to the interior of said enclosing structure from the back and from the front independently; and

(h) base means attached to said enclosing structure for the support thereof, said base means housing a light source electrical ballast which counterbalances said enclosing structure.

3. A luminaire comprising:

(a) a connecting member formed as a generally circular band;

(b) a flange projecting from the inner surface of said band shaped connecting member, said flange having a first side facing generally parallel to the axis of said band shaped connecting member and in one direction, said flange having a second side facing generally parallel to the axis of said band shaped member in the opposite direction to said first flange side;

(c) a back closure member having a periphery and a concave reflecting surface, said periphery of said back closure member engaging said first flange side;

(d) a front closure member having a periphery and at least partially comprised of a light transmitting substance, said periphery of said front closure member engaging said second flange side;

(e) a light source enclosing structure formed by said band shaped connecting member, said back closure member and said front closure member;

(f) an elongated base member, said light source enclosing structure being pivotally secured to the top portion of said base member at a position offset from the midpoint thereof and adapted to pivot about a horizontal axis;

(g) electrical ballast means contained within said base member and offset from the midpoint thereof in the opposite direction from the base member portion to which said enclosing structure is affixed; and

(h) support means affixed to the bottom portion of said base member, said base member being pivotally se- NORTON ANSHER,

C. R. RHODES, Assistant Examiner.

cured to said support means intermediate said electrical ballast means and said light source enclosing structure, said base member adapted to pivot about a vertical axis comprising said support means, and said electrical ballast means counterbalancing said enclosing structure about said support means.

4. A luminaire comprising:

(a) a band shaped member;

(b) a flange projecting around the inside surface of said band shaped member, said flange having a first surface and a second surface each generally radially disposed with respect to said member, and said first and second surfaces generally facing in opposite directions;

(c) a back closure means having a periphery and a concave reflecting surface, said back closure means releasably attached to said band shaped member adjacent the bottom thereof by a first hinging means proximate said back closure means periphery, said back closure means periphery engaging said first surface of said band shaped member when said back closure means is in the engaging position with respect to said band shaped member;

(d) a first latching means proximate the engagement between the said back closure means periphery and said first surface of said band shaped member and said first latching means urging contact therebetween;

(e) a front closure means having a periphery at least partially comprising a light transmitting substance, said front closure means releasably attached to said band shaped member adjacent the top thereof by a second hinging means proximate said front closure means periphery, said front closure means periphery engaging said second surface of said band shaped member when said front closure means is in the engaging position with respect to said band shaped member;

(f) a second latching means proximate the engagement between said first closure means periphery and said second surface of said band shaped member and said second latching means urging contact therebetween;

(g) a light source enclosing structure formed when said back closure means and said front closure means are in engaging position with respect to said band shaped member, both said hinging means being operable independently of and interchangeably with one another thereby providing an access to the interior of said enclosing structure from the back and from the front independently;

(h) an elongated holder adapted to retain a light source and contained and supported by said enclosing structure, said holder oriented so that the elongated dimension of said light source adapted to be retained thereby is horizontal; and

(i) a base member for supporting said enclosing structure, one end of said base member pivotally connected to said annular member to establish a horizontal axis about which said enclosing structure pivots, said base member enclosing a light source electrical ballast at its other end which counterbalances said enclosing structure.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,015,804 1/1962 Nunn 240-622 X 3,149,785 9/1964 Appleton 2403 3,180,979 4/1965 Thruston 240l 1.2 X

Primary Examiner. 

1. A LUMINAIRE COMPRISING: (A) A BAND SHAPED MEMBER; (B) A FLANGE PROJECTING AROUND THE INSIDE SURFACE OF SAID BAND SHAPED MEMBER, SAID FLANGE HAVING A FIRST SURFACE AND A SECOND SURFACE EACH GENERALLY RADIALLY DISPOSED WITH RESPECT TO SAID MEMBER, AND SAID FIRST AND SECOND SURFACES GENERALLY FACING IN OPPOSITE DIRECTIONS; (C) A BACK CLOSURE MEANS HAVING A PERIPHERY AND A CONCAVE REFLECTING SURFACE, SAID BACK CLOSURE MEANS ATTACHED TO SAID BAND SHAPED MEMBER BY A FIRST HINGING MEANS PROXIMATE SAID BACK CLOSURE MEANS PERIPHERY, SAID BACK CLOSURE MEANS PERIPHERY ENGAGING SAID FIRST SURFACE OF SAID BAND SHAPED MEMBER WHEN SAID BACK CLOSURE MEANS IS IN THE ENGAGING POSITION WITH RESPECT TO SAID BAND SHAPED MEMBER; (D) A FIRST LATCHING MEANS PROXIMATE THE ENGAGEMENT BETWEEN SAID BACK CLOSURE MEANS PERIPHERY AND SAID FIRST SURFACE OF SAID BAND SHAPED MEMBER, AND SAID FIRST LATCHING MEANS URGING CONTACT THEREBETWEEN; (E) A FRONT CLOSURE MEANS HAVING A PERIPHERY AT LEAST PARTIALLY COMPRISING A LIGHT TRANSMITTING SUBSTANCE, SAID FRONT CLOSURE MEANS ATTACHED PROXIMATE TO SAID BAND SHAPED MEMBER BY A SECOND HINGING MEANS PROXIMATE SAID FRONT CLOSURE MEANS PERIPHERY, SAID FRONT CLOSURE MEANS PERIPHERY ENGAGING SAID SECOND SURFACE OF SAID BAND SHAPED MEMBER WHEN SAID FRONT CLOSURE MEANS IS IN THE ENGAGING POSITION WITH RESPECT TO SAID BAND SHAPED MEMBER; (F) A SECOND LATCHING MEANS PROXIMATE THE ENGAGEMENT BETWEEN SAID FRONT CLOSURE MEANS PERIPHERY AND SAID SECOND SURFACE OF SAID BAND SHAPED MEMBER, AND SAID SECOND LATCHING MEANS URGING CONTACT THEREBETWEEN, SAID BACK CLOSURE MEANS AND SAID FRONT CLOSURE MEANS BEING INTERCHANGEABLE; (G) A LIGHT SOURCE ENCLOSING STRUCTURE FORMED WHEN SAID BACK CLOSURE MEANS AND SAID FRONT CLOSURE MEANS ARE IN SAID ENGAGING POSITION WITH RESPECT TO SAID BAND SHAPED MEMBER, BOTH SAID HINGING MEANS BEING OPERABLE INDEPENDENTLY OF ONE ANOTHER THEREBY PROVIDING ACCESS TO THE INTERIOR OF SAID ENCLOSING STRUCTURE FROM THE BACK AND FROM THE FRONT INDEPENDENTLY; AND (H) A BASE MEANS ATTACHED TO SAID BAND SHAPED MEMBER FOR SUPPORTING SAID ENCLOSING STRUCTURE. 